Typical beds include a mattress supported above a floor surface by a mattress support. As is widely known, mattresses come in certain sizes, such as twin, full, queen, and king, each having a respective width between side edges and a respective length between the head end edge and the foot end edge thereof. The types of mattress supports available for beds of these different sizes are varied and provide different types of advantages.
One popular type of mattress support is a platform bed. Platform beds have an aesthetic style that is regarded by some as desirable. Platform beds are manufactured by rigidly joining together rigid panels (formed from wood or similar materials) that produce a solid frame on which the mattress is supported, with the panels resting upon and extending upwardly from a floor surface to above the bottom side of the mattress. The panels thus completely surround the mattress along a bottom exterior thereof, while also blocking off access, visually and otherwise, to the area below the mattress. The panels on the side edges of the mattress must have a length corresponding to the length of the mattress, and the panels at the head and/or foot end edges must have a width corresponding to the width of the mattress so that the mattress can be received therebetween. The panels must also be able to support the weight of the mattress and any people and/or things thereon. The exterior aspects of the panels of the platform bed can present an aesthetically desirable appearance as a result of a decorative feature such as wood stain. But platform beds are generally very expensive, thus limiting their availability in many settings. Moreover, platform beds are typically also quite heavy which limits the ability of their owners to move the bed when necessary.
A lower cost option and a more easily transportable mattress support are provided when using a metal bed frame. The metal bed frame is typically characterized by L-shaped side rails that are spaced apart to match the width of the mattress with an exterior portion sitting astride the side edges of the mattress. The side rails are joined by lateral rails to define the bed frame, but the side rails are typically shorter than the length of the mattress so as not to project to or beyond the foot end edge of the mattress supported thereon. The mattress may be placed directly on the frame, or a box spring may be placed on the bed frame with the mattress supported thereon. The mattress is thus supported above the floor surface, but with a much less costly and lighter form of mattress support than that provided by a platform bed. However, these metal bed frames present their own drawbacks. For example, the frame may have legs that rest on the floor surface, but the area below the mattress is otherwise exposed and open. Moreover, the frames themselves, to the extent they present an exterior portion, such as at the side rails, are not particularly desirable to many users or consumers from an aesthetic standpoint.
These deficiencies of the various conventional designs are exacerbated in commercial contexts such as hotels, where both cost effectiveness, in view of the high number of beds that need to be provided, and desirable aesthetics, to entice new and repeat customers, are each highly important aspects when deciding what types of beds and mattress supports to use. Even in personal or home use contexts, it is highly desirable to achieve an attractive aesthetic appearance of a bed without spending an excessive amount of money or significantly limiting possible movements of the bed. Conventional designs like the platform bed and the metal frame bed are not viable options for achieving all of these goals.
The Assignee-Applicant of the present application has therefore developed simulated platform bed systems to help achieve these objectives in a better way than the conventional designs. To this end, one prior design of such a simulated platform bed system, which may be formed from a number of separate panels that are configured to fold up for storage or transport, is described in U.S. Pat. No. 9,089,222.
It would be desirable to provide further alternative and/or improved designs for a simulated platform bed system, which continue to address the various drawbacks of bed designs like the platform bed and the metal frame bed.